Footwear



Sept. 30, `1969 H. M. SMITH ET Al- FOOTWEAR Filed Oct. 5. 1966Ilflilllll United States Patent O U.S. Cl. 12S-595 4 Claims ABSTRACT OFTHE DISCLOSURE An article of footwear wherein the inner sole structureof the shoe includes a flexible envelope conforming in outline to thewearers foot and having .an upward extension at`the heel portion. Theenvelope has aplurality of lengthwise channels and contains a owablematerial consisting of solid particles such as phenolic beads in alubricative liquid material such as mineral oil. The channels retard owof the material under pressure from a wearers foot and direct thek owgenerally lengthwise of the shoe.

l This invention relates to .a podiatric device or appliance for usewith or as a part of a shoe or similar article of footware. The devicemay be either an inserted insole type unit or an integral part of theshoe structure and operates by weight transferrence and hydraulicresistance to support and cushion the foot to afford the maximum bodyweight-bearing efficiency, resulting in minimal specic pressuresuniformly dispersed over as great an area of the foot as is attainable.The device of the present invention further functions to fill theconcavities of the foot and to surround and cushion the convexitiesthereof, thereby relieving all specific points of pressure whichnormally tend to produce abnormalities such as callouses, bunions, cornsand other malfunctions of the foot generally attributed to improperlydevised footwear.

Additionally, this podiatric device functions to cradle and stabilizethe heel, generally considered to be the rudder of the foot, so that inthe course of a step the foot is directionally guided forward in astraight line. The mechanical operation of the present podiatric deviceand various other novel features of construction inherent in thefootwear of the present invention are pointed out in detail inconjunction with the following description of a typical embodimentthereof, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing,wherein like numerals represent like parts throughout the various views,and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a preferred embodiment of the podiatric deviceof the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken about on a line 3-3 ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken about on line 4-4 ofFIG. 2, and showing portions of the footwear;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view of one form of a flowable mediumcontained within the device shown in FIG. l; .and

FIG, 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 and showing another form of aflowable medium.

Referring now to the drawing, and particularly FIG. 3, there is shown,in cross-section, an article of footwear comprising an upper 10 .and anoutsole 11, and the podiatric device structure generally designated 12,the upper being secured along the lower margin to the outsole byconventional fastening means. Insole 12 may be secured within the shoeby -fastening the lower surface tothe upper surface of the outsole 11,thus forming an integral part of the shoe structure, or in theillustrated form, the insole may be placed within the shoe and retainedin proper position by a corresponding and irregular lateral contour ofthe upper adjacent to the lower margin thereof, whereby the insole maybe readily inserted into substantially conventional footwear.

The insole portion 12 of this pediatric device comprises an envelope orhollow device formed into the general shape of a conventional insole inpart, that is, having a heelstructure, toe structure and arch portionsindicated at 14, 15 and 16, respectively in FIG. 2, such envelopeincluding lower walls 17 and 18 and side walls 19. The side walls 19 .atthe heel portion, as'shown in FIG. 4, extend upward and around'thelateral and posterior areas of the heel and have inner wall portions 20spaced therefrom, forming a chamber for receiving the heel. The envelopestructure, shown herein as extending upwardly at the heel portion, mayalso extend upwardly and about other portions of the foot as desired andto provide the ilowable medium cushioning effect about or at any desiredportion of the sides of the foot or across the toe and/or instepportions thereof. The envelope may be formed of any suitable resilientflexible material, such as rubber or other elastomeric or plasticcomponents.

Extending from the anterior extremity of the arch of the foot backwardto the posterior extremity of the arch are lateral tubular channels 22constructed of an elastomeric film which can vary in flexibility andnumber .and diameter, as needed, to properly control the flow of thetransfer medium from the forward area to the heel area. These channelsare disposed within the insole or envelope 12 in side by side relation,as lateral tubular flutes inserted between the upper .and lower portionsof the device, so that they appear as a series of tubes or round pipesfastened at the top and bottom of the envelope, so that they cannot moveforward or backward, but may expand diametrically as required.

The medium contained within the envelope may be an encapsulated mediumcomposed of a very low specific gravity hollow spheroidal organichydrophobic, or hydrophilic body, designated 24 in FIGS. 5 and 6, suchas hollow glass spheres or phenol formaldehyde resinous microspheresalso sometimes called phenolic beads or micro balloons. Also suitablefor this use are soluble or colloidal suspensoids in a liquid externalphase, designated 25 in FIG. 5. These bodies may be used alone, as at 24in FIG. 6, or suspended in a liquid, uid, or gas to enhance the flowproperty of the microspheres or colloidal suspensoids.

During the course of a normal step, the pediatric device of the presentinvention functions as follows: as the posterior area, or heel, comesdown and pressure is exerted on this area of the weight transfer medium,the medium is pushed forward through and/or around the tubes or flutesto the anterior, or forward area, around and under the toes, butconfined within the wall structures 17 and 18. As this material isforced through the channels 22 into the toe portions, the channels orflutes act to restric the flow in the area of the arch and expand underthis influence of restricted flow to cradle .and apply supjwrtingpressure against the arch while the flowable medium in the toe and heelportions applies like supporting pressure through the associated upperwall 17 and against the toe and heel portions of the foot. In thismanner, the weight is distributed over the largest possible area,minimizing and practically eliminating specific pressure points, thusreducing friction.

As the step proceeds and the weight shifts from the heel to the toearea, the medium is again forced through the channels and into the heelarea designated 20 in FIG. 4. Again, the supporting pressure isdistributed over the entire area of the foot.

To further enhance the operation of this podiatric device, it isintended to incorporate in the upper portion of the shoe 10 anexpandable resilient material which will yield with a minimum ofpressure to relieve any prior foot distresses caused by conventionalfootwear.

Further, the restrictive tubular channel or flute devices may beincorporated in any section of the podiatric device or shoe structure inorder to properly regulate the ow of the medium to alford the maximumcushioning effect as herein intended.

Having thus described and illustrated the preferred embodiment of ourinvention, it is understood that such description and illustration is byway of example only and that such modifications and changes as maysuggest themselves to those skilled in the art are intended to fallwithin the scope of the present invention, which is limited only by thescope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A podiatric device comprising a shoe having an insole comprising aflexible envelope conforming generally in outline to and extendingsubstantially the full length of a wearers foot and having an upper walladapted to engage against the underside of such wearers foot and a lowerwall connected along its side edges to the upper wall to form a closedenvelope, collapsible and expansible chambers within the front and rearportions of said envelope extending substantially the full width of theball portion and the heel portion, respectively, of the wearers foot, aplurality of tubular channel members extending lengthwise of and securedmedially within said envelope generally in the area of and extendingsubstantially the full width of the arch of the foot and establishinghuid communication between said chambers, .and a flowable mediumcomprising finely divided solid particles and a lubricative material insaid envelope owable between said chambers through the channel membersfor supporting the wearers foot whereby uniformly distributed supportingpressure is lapplied along the entire underside of the foot, saidtubular channel members being relatively thin walled whereby shiftingpressure from heel to toe in Walking progressively compresses saidtubular channel members to cause tluid flow forwardly therethrough toexpand the front chamber as the rear chamber collapses and vice versa.

2. A podiatric device according to claim 1 wherein said channel membersare secured along their top and undersides to the respective upper andlower Walls of said envelope.

3. A podiatric device according to claim 1 wherein the envelope includesan upstanding portion adjacent its pe riphery at the heel portionthereof for engaging about lateral and posterior portions of the heel ofa foot, said owable medium communicating into such upstanding portion ofsaid envelope to provide yieldable support against said heel portions.

4. A podiatric device according to claim 1 wherein said channels tapertoward said heel portion and are progressively reduced incross-sectional area from adjacent the toe portion to adjacent the heelportion.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,762,134 9/1956 Town 128-5942,981,010 4/1961 Aaskov 12S-594 X 3,325,920 6/1967 Werner et al 36-2.5

FOREIGN PATENTS 866,934 5/ 1961 Great Britain.

DALTON L. TRULUCK, Primary Examiner JOHN D. YASKO, Assistant ExaminerU.S. Cl. X.R. 12S- 25.2, 582, 594

